Coventry firefighters told to ignore alarm calls

[dutchman]

A Coventry MP has raised the alarm over a decision to stop firefighters responding to activated fire alarms, amid fears it could cost lives.



Changes brought in by cuts-hit West Midlands fire service mean firefighters are not now being called out in most cases when automatic fire alarms (AFAs) are sounding.

AFAs are fitted in most shops, offices, factories and some domestic buildings such as old people’s homes.

The measure – introduced in April as part of six-month trial – is partly to prevent firefighters’ time being wasted by false call-outs from faulty systems.

It comes as the service faces unprecedented government funding cuts.

But Coventry North West Labour MP Geoffrey Robinson is demanding an explanation, adding: “I find it very shocking to learn this is the route being taken.”

He had been approached by the Fire Industry Association, which represents fire alarm companies and has been protesting to the government over the West Midlands’ decision.

Its chairman Martin Havey said it “will put lives at risk, and increase the chance of severe fire damage to commercial property, which in turn could lead to businesses failing with a very real threat to jobs.”

It comes as West Midlands fire service says it is facing the worst government funding cuts in the country, with up to a third of its £120million budget to be wiped out by 2015.

Fire stations could face closure, and more job losses are expected.

The changes follow less drastic reforms in January, which saw the number of fire crews responding to AFAs cut from two to one.

Chiefs say 98 per cent of call-outs from automatic fire alarms – about 10,000 a year – are false alarms, often causing by faulty electrical equipment.

They are still attending a building if an AFA is backed up by a call from a member of the public, or from someone in the building.

They will also attend if an alarm panel box on a wall has been smashed, or more than one detector head is going off – suggesting there could be someone in the building.

Before the changes came in, among the two per cent of occasions when AFA alerts were not false alarms, chiefs say no firefighting response was required in two thirds of cases.

And when there have been fires, damage has been contained in most instances to one square metre.

Government officials have told the Fire Industry Association decisions are a matter for local fire chiefs rather than ministers.

Mr Robinson has written to West Midlands chief fire officer Vij Randeniya seeking further details.